Ghost of a Rose
by Nanaka19
Summary: The Sanzo party meet an unusual young man who’s being hunted by something they’ve never seen before. Could there be more to this man than meets the eye.
1. Chapter 1

The Works Of SchwarzKitten

Saiyuki

Ghost of a Rose

Rated: R

Summary: The Sanzo party meet an unusual young man who's being hunted by something they've never seen before. Could there be more to this man than meets the eye.

Disclaimer: Don't own Saiyuki, for if I did then I'd be happy, and the universe does not want me to be happy.

Warning: yaoi, some lime perhaps... no lemons cause I can't write them

Chapter 1

It was early night and there was just a sliver of sun light left in the sky as Gojyo walked down the street towards the inn on his way back from buying some more cigarrets when he heard a startled cry followed by a loud crash comming from one of the dark alleyways. As Gojyo drew near the alley a person with long white hair stummbled out clutching their side.

"You ok?" Gojyo asked as he drew near the person.

The persons head jerked up and a pair of large pink eyes stared up at him from behind the curtain of white hair falling accross his face. Another crash was heard from the alley accompanied by growls. The young man - for Gojyo felt that despite some femminan qualities he was in fact looking at a man - turned slightly to look back at the alley which caused his hair to shift and give Gojyo a good view of his blodied side, hand grasping the wound firmly in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

He stumbled further away as Gojyo drew closer to him. As he stumbled and fell back into Gojyo his head shot up in surprise before turning all attention back to the alley as he triped and fell to the ground. Gojyo looked and saw a shadow of something moving in the darkness. The creature shifted slightly into the light wild red eyes stared out at them as the creature snarled at them revealing sharp fangs that glinted in the dieing sun light. It's skin was a black and had a leathery appearance, it's head was shaped somewhat like a birds and a long, thick, forked tounge flicked in and out of the wicked beak. A small pair of tattered leather wings sat appon its back, and blood glinted off the beasts large clawed hands while its clawed hind legs The creature glared at them for a moment then with a snarl retreated down the alleyway. With a frown Gojyo looked down at the man who was trembling slightly from fear and pain.

"Are you ok?" Gojyo asked as he kneeled down next to the man.

A pair of bright pink eyes stared up at him and with a blink the young man smiled up at him and said in a soft musical voice "I should be just fine. Thank you so much for your concern." With that said the young man attempted to stand back up but the wound in his side proved to be worse than he was letting on.

"Fine my ass! You can't even stand up on your own." Gojyo scoffed at him before reaching out to take hold of the mans arm "Come with me, I got a friend who can patch you up. Besides if that thing attacks you again you'll be killed for sure."

The white haired man accepted Gojyo's help up before pulling away from him. "Really, I thank you for your concern, but I'll be just fine. Besides I can take care of myself, it just caught me off guard." Then in a light whispered "They've never attacked while I was in a city before."

He started to turn and walk away but stumbled and would have fallen to the ground again had Gojyo not caught him.

"You are not ok. I am going to take you back with me and patch you up, and I'm sure you could do with a safe place to stay for the night incase that thing comes back for you." Gojyo said firmly as he started to lead the man towards the inn. "Besides you're too cute to leave injured in the street."

The man blushed at that but offered no resistance as Gojyo led him to the inn. "Fine, but may I at least know the name of my abductor." He said with a sly grin.

"I'm Sha Gojyo, and I'm not abducting you, I'm just making sure you don't get slaughtered in the street. What if some kid happened to stumble upon your body? That could traumatize the poor kid, and I don't wanna feel responsible for that so your just gonna have to come with."

A slender white eyebrow rose up as bright pink eyes stared at him as if he were crazy. "Your insane aren't you, or your just a pervert hoping I'll reward you with sex. Just my luck, I must be losing my touch." He sighed and shook his head, "By the way, my name is Shoubi Howaito. At least I'll be able to get a good nights sleep, they won't attack me again with you around." With a content purr Howaito leaned against Gojyo and just silently let himself be led into the inn.

_He sure did change his toon fast _Gojyo thought as he led Howaito into the inn and up to his room. _One second he's annoyed with me and the next he's cuddling my arm._ With a sigh Gojyo helped Howaito settle down onto the bed.

As Gojyo pulled out some first aid supplies Howaito sighed softly and carefully pulled his hand away from the wound and looked down at it. "Really, it's not as bad as it seams, I've had wounds a lot worse than this. See, it's already stopped bleeding."

Gojyo sat on the bed next to him and moved the white button-up shirt out of the way so he could clean and wrap the wound. _This feels like silk, shame, it's definitely ruined now. _He thought as he finished wrapping up Howaito's wound. "I think this shirt is completely ruined, I'll lone you one of mine."

"No need for that. Actually I have a room in this inn, it's just down the hall." Howaito said with a smile as he swung his legs lightly back and forth, then with a sigh he stood up. "I really should get back to my room before Horyuu starts to worry."

"Horyuu?" Gojyo scowled slightly in confusion, _Horyuu means purple willow. How can a flower worry._

Howaito just giggled at him, already knowing why Gojyo was confused. "I don't mean a flower silly. Horyuu is the name of my guardian dragon, well she's not really my guardian so much as I am hers. Why don't you come back to my room with me and I'll introduce you to her. Besides, you said you wouldn't leave me alone."

"I didn't say that."

"Well it was implied." Howaito said with a pout, then with a sly grin "Come on, or have you decided not to sleep with me."

"I thought you were disgusted by the idea of sleeping with me as a reward for helping you." Gojyo said as they walked down the hall towards Howaito's room.

"Actually I said it was perverted of you to expect sex as a reward. I said nothing about sleeping together, nor did I say I was opposed to the idea." Howaito smirked as he opened the door to his room and walked in with Gojyo right behind him.

"Horyuu." He called out softly into the dark room, soon after some soft chirping could be heard from under the bed. Howaito kneeled down next to the bed, pulling the sheet up. "Horyuu, what are you doing hiding under the bed? I wasn't gone that long." He reached under the bed and pulled out a dragonling that looked a lot like Hakuryu only a tad bit bigger and a dark shade of purple with solid black eyes. He stood back up cradling the mini dragon in his arms and turned towards Gojyo with a smile.

"This is Horyuu, she's a bit shy and tends to get lonely when I'm not around. Horyuu this is Gojyo, he helped me out after I was attacked by a tracker so you better be nice to him and say hello." The little dragon crooned softly as it looked over towards Gojyo, giving him a penetrating look before giving a soft coo hello.

"So, Gojyo, now that you've walked me back to the safety of my room. What do you plan to do?" Howaito asked as he set Horyuu down on a table and stepped up close to Gojyo. "Are you going to wish me good luck and go back to your room. Or, perhaps, you'd like to stay here for the night and keep me, safe."

As he spoke, Howaito, stretched his arms out over Gojyo's shoulders and lightly pressed their hips together as he stared up into Gojyo's eyes from beneath long lashes. "Besides, it's been well over a month since I last had the opportunity to share my bed with anyone."

"Well it would just be rude of me to turn down such a lovely offer." Gojyo said as he lowered his head to brush their lips together softly. "Thought I can't help but feel I'm taking advantage of your kindness."

"Hmm. Well don't feel so bad, I'm not that kind." he leaned up and nibbled on Gojyo's lower lip. "Besides I'm not some clueless child. I know what I want and I know how to get it." He caught Gojyo's hands in his and slowly walked backwards towards the bed, letting off a happy grin as the back of his knees hit the bed. "Question is, do you know what you want and are you willing to reach out and take it." he moved so that he was kneeling on the bed. He pulled Gojyo close, wrapping his arms around Gojyo's neck and pressing their chests together.

Gojyo reached up and placed a hand on Howaito's cheek and smiled "Very willing." and with that he leaned forward and kissed Howaito softly on the lips. He lightly slid his tongue along Howaito's lips, and swiftly slipped his tongue inside when they parted.

With a happy sigh, Howaito pulled back and smiled. "Well then, by all means, don't hesitate to take."

TBC...

Nanaka: Please review and tell me what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

The Works Of SchwarzKitten

Saiyuki

Ghost of a Rose

Rated: R

Description:

Disclaimer: Don't own Saiyuki, I don't own anything. Wait a second. looks around room. Oh wait, I have a hamster. So don't sue me, unless you're desperate for and old hamster.

Chapter 2

The next mourning Gojyo awoke to the pleasant sensation of someone nibbling on his ear, and with a pleased groan he reached out and pulled the person on to him. "Mmm. Now that's a very nice way to wake up." He said as he opened his eyes and looked down into Howaito's brilliant pink ones.

"Well I have to leave and I just thought I'd wake you up before I go." Howaito said with a slight giggle, "Now let me go before you wrinkle my shirt."

Gojyo let him go and took a moment to look over Howaito's outfit. He was wearing a black leather shirt that zipped in back with long flowing white sleeves which appeared to be made of silk, his pants were also black leather with a strip of the white silk material running down the outer leg. Howaito's long white hair was now pulled back into a braid and he had donned several bracelets and necklaces, all silver.

"Wow." Gojyo said as he sat up in the bed, "You look good."

"Thanks." Howaito said with a smile, "and thanks again for helping me out last night. I really appreciate it, and even though I'd love to stay and thank you some more I really have to go. Horyuu seems to have left the room sometime last night and now I have to go and find her."

With a frown Gojyo looked at the door, "How did she manage that?"

"I have no idea, she does it every now and then, usually when there's something in the inn that's caught her interest." Howaito sighed as he lifted up two axes from a table near the door and strapped them to his hips, then he reached out and lifted a large thick metal staff which he then strapped onto his back. Once finished he lifted up his bag and turned back towards Gojyo.

"Good bye Gojyo it was a pleasure meeting you, too bad we couldn't spend more time together." Howaito leaned in and placed a kiss on Gojyo's lips before turning and heading out the door, leaving Gojyo alone with his thoughts.

_Well he certainly was an interesting person. Mysterious even, he managed to keep me from asking too many questions. I'm still not entirely sure why he was attacked. Hell I don't even know what attacked him. _As he thought to himself he returned to his room and gathered his things before heading downstairs for breakfast.

When Gojyo got downstairs he was surprised to see Howaito sitting at a table with the others chatting happily with Hakkai and Goku.

Hakkai looked up as he saw Gojyo enter the dining area. "Good mourning Gojyo. Howaito was just talking about you."

"Oh really and just what did he have to say about me."

Howaito smiled up at him. "Nothing much, just that you helped me out after I was attacked in an alley. By the way, why didn't you tell me about little Hakuryu. It's not everyday one meets a dragonling."

"I guess it just didn't occur to me. Besides I thought you were in a hurry to leave."

"Well I was, but I decided to delay my trip since Horyuu rarely ever gets to play with other of her kind." He reached out and stroked the top of Hakuryus head. "Actually, little Hakuryu is the first dragonling she's ever seen."

"Why's that." Goku asked as piled more food on to his plate.

"I found her when she was just an egg, dragonlings never leave their nests unguarded, so seeing as her parent's were nowhere to be seen I thought it best I take her with me and return her to the dragonlings if I ever found them. I never did find any, and she's made the choice to stay with me rather than go off to find them on her own."

"Wow, so she's been with you her entire life. That's cool." Goku paused for a second. "Hey! Since Hakuryu can change into a jeep can Horyuu change into something to?"

Howaito chuckled softly "Yes she can. She can turn into a motorcycle."

"Cool. So where are you going."

"Right now I'm heading to a city just a few weeks west of here. Then I'll be traveling North, not sure for how long, but it'll probably take up to a year or two to get where I need to go." Howaito glanced out the window and sighed, "As much as I enjoyed this relaxing conversation I really need to be heading off." Horyuu chirped unhappily as Howaito scooped her off the table after gathering up his things.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, perhaps we'll meet again one day." Howaito said as he carried an unhappy Horyuu out of the inn. A few moments later they heard the sound of a motorcycle riding off.

"He was nice." Goku spoke happily, "but there was just something about him that seemed different. He doesn't really seem to be human , but I'm positive he's not a demon either. He must not be all that bright to have slept with a perverted water sprite like you, surely he's way out of your league."

"Shut up you baka saru! And for your information he came onto me, I wasn't even considering sleeping with him."

Hakkai laughed lightly, "I find it hard to believe that you were helping someone that good looking and exotic and you didn't even think about trying anything."

"Well, sure I thought about it, but I wasn't intending on acting on those thoughts."

"Will you all just shut up already and finish eating so we can leave." Sanzo snapped at them from behind the newspaper.

"Come on Sanzo, didn't you like him too." Goku said with a grin as he started shoveling food into his mouth.

"Sure, aside from a polite hello he didn't try to talk to me at all. Now shut up and eat."

Breakfast ended without further incident and the whole Howaito incident was put in the past. They were now in the jeep heading west towards the next town. Goku and Gojyo were in the back bickering like usual with Sanzo yelling at them to shut up every now and then.

Just as their bickering was starting up again Hakkai said, "What's that?" while leaning forward in his seat.

Silenced they all looked ahead of them to see something purple stretched out on the road.

"I think that's Horyuu." Goku said in surprise, "What is she doing alone in the middle of the road."

When they got close to her Hakuryu suddenly changed back dumping them all on the group and flew swiftly to Horyuu's side.

"Ow, dammit. You could have at least waited for us to get out." Gojyo complained as he dusted himself off.

"She's hurt!." Goku said as he leaned over Horyuu, who was now stretching her head up to look at them.

Hakkai leaned down and carefully lifted Horyuu up. "It's a deep cut across her wing but she should do fine after some rest. Where's Howaito though? I'm sure he wouldn't leave her alone while she's hurt."

Horyuu stretched out her good wing and reached with her neck towards the woods just as a loud shrieking wail game from that direction.

"What the hell was that." Gojyo said as he rushed off towards the shriek with Goku close behind.

They broke through the woods and entered a large clearing just north of the road and saw five creatures laying dead around the clearing. Gojyo noticed that they were like the creature that had attacked Howaito the night before, only they were noticeable bigger. Howaito stood in the middle of the chaos, a sixth creature lay dead at his feet with his staff skewered through it's head. Howaito stood with his head pressed against the staff taking deep breaths. He was covered in blood his pants were now missing one leg while the other had been ripped off at the knee, and his shirt was nothing more than a few scraps of fabric. His once long hair now came short of his shoulders.

"Howaito!" Goku cried out as he headed towards him. Howaito tensed up and tightened his grip on one of his axes, turning slightly towards them. He soon relaxed though as Goku drew near.

"Why hello Goku. What are you doing here?" Howaito said breathlessly.

"We saw Horyuu in the middle of the road, then heard a shriek so we came to see what was going on. Are you alright, you look like hell."

"I've been better, though I've also been worse. I'll survive, I just need to rest a bit."

"I got an idea!" Goku turned towards Sanzo, "Sanzo, is it ok if we give Howaito a ride to the next town. It can't be safe to leave him out here injured."

"Whatever, let's just hurry up and get going. I'd like to get to the next town before night fall."

Howaito smiled at them as he pushed away from his staff, "Why thank you, I appreciate this greatly."

Hakuryu turned back into the jeep, Sanzo and Hakkai got in while Gojyo helped Howaito into the jeep.

"What about your staff?" Goku asked.

"Forget it. I don't feel like lifting it right now anyway."

"I'll get it for you. I doubt you'd want to come all the way back here for it." Goku said as he moved over to the staff and grabbed it with both hands.

"Try if you want, but it's really not necessary." Howaito said as he settled into the jeep next to Gojyo with a sigh.

Goku pulled up on the staff to remove it from the creatures skull, stopped then blinked at the staff in surprise before letting go and heading to the jeep.

"How heavy is that thing?" He asked Howaito as he sat down in his seat. "It wouldn't budge at all."

"I don't know exactly how heavy it is. All I know is I've yet to meet anyone who could lift it on their own." Howaito said as he rested his head on Gojyo's shoulder. "I think I'll just take a little nap now."

Gojyo looked down at Howaito in shock. _Shit, I saw him lift that staff one handed this mourning. To think that it's so heavy that the saru couldn't even get it to budge, Howaito must be scarey strong. _With a sigh he settled back as they continued their journey towards the next town. Horyuu sitting in Hakkai's lap, Sanzo was just starring ahead of them at the road, and Goku checked over some of Howaito's wounds wanting to make sure none were serious.

This howaito guy was proving to be more interesting then Gojyo had perceived. Perhaps once he was rested up he would tell them what was going on.

TBC...

Nanaka: If you like my story please review. Cause I'm starting to hate my story and I don't want to hate it cause that'll just slow down my writing, and I'd like to finish this story before my brain tries to change it again. This story has changed plot several times, close to 10 I think, it changed about 3 times after I had started writing it, I had to ignore those though and stay with the plot I was writing otherwise I'd just end up with 10 different chapter ones and nothing else.


	3. Chapter 3

The Works Of SchwarzKitten

Saiyuki

Ghost of a Rose

Rated: R

Description:

Disclaimer: Don't own Saiyuki, I don't own anything. Wait a second. looks around room. Oh wait, I have a hamster. So don't sue me, unless you're desperate for a hamster, old one died so now it's a young one.

Chapter 3

Aside from being attacked by a few weak demons, which Howaito slept soundly through, the group had managed to make it to the next town before nightfall, where they found an inn and got two rooms for the night.

Being unable to wake Howaito, Gojyo ended up carrying him into one of the rooms and setting him carefully onto the bed, where Hakkai set to work on re-patching up his wounds while Sanzo went into the other room for some alone time before dinner.

"His wounds appear to be healing swiftly and none are too serious." Hakkai said as he finished bandaging Howaito up. "He should be fine by morning. He must have been exhausted since he managed to sleep through the entire day." He stood and went to the door. "I'm going to go out to the market to restock some of our supplies, Goku why don't you come with me."

"Sure" Goku said, thus leaving Gojyo alone in the room with a sleeping Howaito. With a sigh he pulled a chair near the bed putting his feet up on the edge of the bed he leaned back in the chair.

"Thank you." Howaito said while turning his head to look at Gojyo, who nearly fell backwards out of the chair in surprise.

"Oh you're awake." Gojyo said, sitting up in the chair.

"Actually I've been awake for awhile. I just don't get many opportunities to just sit back and relax. So thanks." Howaito said as he sat up in the bed and stretched his arms above his head.

"Well it's nice to see you're doing ok. You were pretty badly beaten up."

"This is nothing." Howaito said with a smile. "I've had paper cuts that were worse than this. I remember one time a hunter beast nearly ripped my leg clear off."

"Shit. So even though it looked bad you would have been perfectly fine without our help?"

"True, but Horyuu wanted to spend more time with Hakuryu and she would have thrown a fit if I said no. Not that I would have. Horyuu can do as she pleases, I haven't the heart to force her to do otherwise. Besides I'm not her master. She could leave me whenever she wants."

Howaito stared off to the side of the room almost sadly for a moment before looking back up at Gojyo with a smile before standing from the bed. "Well I really must be going. I've lost too much time already."

"You can't leave yet." Gojyo said standing up as well. "It's getting dark out, and besides your wounds could slow you down."

With a smile Howaito lifted his shirt and pulled the bandages off revealing unflawed skin beneath. "I told you these wounds are nothing. It only takes but a thought to make them go away. Even my hair" He reached up and pulled a lock of his hair which lengthened as he pulled till it was once again waste length "is easily fixed."

Gojyo could only watch in shocked disbelief as Howaito gathered his things. Howaito stopped in the doorway looking over his shoulder at Gojyo. "Goodbye Sha Gojyo, give your friends my thanks."

"Goodbye Howaito, and good luck on your journey." Gojyo said as Howaito turned and left. Both of them oblivious to the fierce red eyes that had been watching them from the window.

After Howaito left, Gojyo sat back down in the chair to ponder the mystery that was the white haired man. _What the hell is he! I don't think even a demon could just think a wound like that away, and what he did with his hair was amazing. _With an exasperated sigh he got up and moved to the bed. "I should just stop thinking about him. He's gone and that's that."

"We're back." Goku called at as he opened the door and came into the room an hour later. "Hey where's Howaito."

"He left." Gojyo said sitting up. "Wait didn't he find you guys to get Horyuu back."

"No. We still have her." Goku said putting some bags down on the table. "Why would he leave without her?"

"Goku go tell Sanzo that dinner is on its way up." Hakkai said as he walked through the door, Hakuryu perched on his shoulder while Horyuu flew over to the table.

"Sure"

"So Howaito left already." Hakkai said to Gojyo after Goku had left the room. "I hope he'll be fine, it's already dark out and those wounds could slow him down."

"Heh. Don't worry about that. Apparently he can heal himself with just a thought, when he left his wounds were all gone, hell even his hair was back to full length."

"He should have at least stayed the night. He'll be vulnerable in the dark, and his going will be slow without Horyuu to carry him." Hakkai said as he looked out the window.

"I'm sure he'll be fine." Gojyo said as he opened a beer, "It's not like he's some damsel in distress."

"You're right. I guess I've just gotten use to running into people on our journey who need our protection. It's not every day we find someone capable of fending for themselves."

"We've been saving people from demons though. That guy has something else entirely chasing him. Last thing we need is to get caught up in his problems."

"You're right. I'm going to go down stairs and help bring our food up."

Gojyo looked over at Horyuu who was staring out the window. "You worried about Howaito." Gojyo asked as he reached out to scratch the top of her head. Horyuu cooed as she craned her head into his hand.

Suddenly the glass from the window exploded in on him and Gojyo soon found himself pinned to the floor looking up at what appeared to be one of the creatures that had been hunting Howaito. It's sharp talons dug into his shoulders and upper legs as it open its mouth revealing fangs that were too long to possibly have fit in its mouth.

"Holy shit." Gojyo said as he struggled to get out from beneath the creature. Horyuu few over screeching and started to beat at the creature with her wings only to be knocked into a wall by its tail.

"Fuck!" Gojyo cried out as the long fangs slid into his shoulder. Seconds later the door was flung open and he heard Goku shout out his name followed shortly by the sound of Sanzo's gun going off.

With a screech the creature ripped itself away from Gojyo, long fangs ripped out of his shoulder causing the wound to widen, and jumped from the shattered window. Goku ran over to Gojyo just as Hakkai came running to the door.

"Oh my god Gojyo. Are you alright, what happened?" Hakkai asked as he kneeled down beside Gojyo.

"I think. I've been poisoned." Gojyo said, his eyes dilated and breathing labored. "My whole body has gone numb. Everything is going... purple? Heh, now I know I'm dying."

Hakkai moved his hands over the gaping wound in Gojyo's shoulder and focused on healing the wound and removing the poison from Gojyo's body. _Shit I can't remove the poison, I don't even think I can slow its spread, and without knowing the type of venom we can't get an antidote._ A weight settled on his shoulder and he looked up to see Horyuu sitting on his shoulder. She gave a few soft chirps before nuzzling his cheek and taking off out the window.

"Where is she going?" Goku asked while looking out the window.

"To get Howaito I believe. I can't stop the poison, but he may know how to stop it." Hakkai looked down at Gojyo who had shut his eyes and was focusing on breathing.

It was almost an hour later and they had moved Gojyo into the other room. Hakkai had refused to eat when their dinner arrived, opting instead to watch over Gojyo. Sanzo had fallen asleep in a chair, head propped back against the wall behind him. Goku was staring out the window wondering how long it would take Howaito to return.

"What room are you in!" came a yell from the hall startling Sanzo, as well as everyone else at the inn, awake.

Sanzo got up from the chair with a muttered curse and opened the door. "Shut the hell up and get in here."

Howaito walked swiftly into the room. His outfit was similar to the one he had on before only what had been white was now a deep red, and his hair was left unbound and flowing down his back.

He looked down at Gojyo with a frown. "Shit. I was afraid of this." Hakkai moved out of the way as Howaito sat down on the bed and reached out towards Gojyo's forehead. "Gojyo. Open your eyes and tell me what color your on."

With a frown Gojyo opened his eyes and stared up at the ceiling. "Green."

"Ah that's good. If it was yellow I'd be worried." Howaito gently pressed one hand to Gojyo's left shoulder while settling the other above his right hip. "Tell me, how far has the pins and needles feeling progressed."

"It's up to my knees now. I kinda prefer it to the feeling of being an ice cube though."

Howaito chuckled softly as a soft white glow emitted from his hands. "I doubt you'd be saying that if the sensation was up to your hips."

"Heh, you're probably right." Gojyo's head lulled to the side and he let off a tired sigh. "Feels good now."

"It's late." Howaito said looking over at them, his whole body seemed to be glowing now. "You should all get some sleep. Gojyo will need rest, his body needs time to recuperate from the poison. Luckily I was able to remove the poison before it did too much damage."

As Howaito spoke Hakkai could feel his eyes start to droop he turned his head slightly as he lied down on the ground and saw sanzo already asleep in the chair and Goku nodding off at his feet. He could feel an aura in the air pressing around him, lulling them all into a deep sleep.

TBC...

* * *

Nanaka: Please Review and tell me what you think. Reviews make me happy and when I'm happy I write.

Sorry this chapter took so long to get out, but the ten plots for this story turned into eleven leaving me to sort it all out again and bring it back to one.


	4. Chapter 4

The Works Of SchwarzKitten

Saiyuki

Ghost of a Rose

Rated: R

Disclaimer: Don't own Saiyuki, I don't own anything. Wait a second. looks around room. Oh wait, I have a hamster. So don't sue me, unless you're desperate for a hamster that smells despite how many times I try and wash her or clean the cage.

Chapter 4

Morning came and the four awoke to the smell of breakfast and an overly cheerful voice. "Good morning! Wake up sleepy heads, I brought up breakfast."

"Mmm, great. I'm starved!" Goku said happily as he pulled himself off the floor while Sanzo grumbled unhappily at having fallen asleep in the chair.

"You ok Gojyo." Hakkai asked as he got up and made his way to the table.

"Great." Gojyo said as he sat down at the table. "Best sleep I've had in a long time."

"Great. Now would somebody explain what the hell happened last night." Sanzo said while glaring at Howaito. "And why the hell did I wake up in a chair."

"Sorry that's my fault." Howaito said staring down at the table. "I kinda forced you all to fall asleep. It was late you all needed your sleep, and I thought it best to discuss things in the morning."

"Well it's morning now so start talking." Sanzo snapped as he started to eat before Goku could finish off the food. "For starters. What the hell are you? You're not a demon and you're definitely not human."

"Hmm, how do I put this. I am an embodiment of life and light." Howaito said looking at the ceiling while biting his lower lip. "That's really the best explanation I can give for what I am."

"I'm from a parallel part of this world, kind of like how heaven is part of this world but yet a different world all together. My world consists mostly my magical creatures, like dragons for instance." Howaito then got a sad far off look in his eyes. "It's really beautiful there, completely wilderness. No cities no technology. It's quiet there and peaceful."

"If it's so great there why are you here?" Goku asked around a mouthful of food.

"Well a long time ago someone with a lot of power trapped me in this world in hopes of using my powers to take over this world. I was able to escape and hide but unfortunately I am unable to return to my world." Howaito pulled his feet up and hugged his legs. "For years now I've been trying to get back but they're guarding the gateway and they keep moving it so I'm forced to try and find where it's at and get there before it moves again, or to try and find some other way to get back. Those creatures were sent by them to capture me for even though their original leader is long dead they still seek to use my power."

"So why did that creature attack me last night."

"They attacked you because they saw you help me out several times. When they saw that Horyuu was with you they assumed that you were my ally and attacked you before you could get the chance to do them any harm."

"Damn." Gojyo said, leaning back in his chair and lighting up a cigaret. "So what was with the poison. I've never heard of a poison that warps your sight like that, and where each color came with a different effect."

"I'm not sure if it has a name. I've been calling it rainbow venom because it goes through every color of the rainbow. First is violet which numbs the entire body. Then Blue which makes you feel as if your body is made of ice. Green makes you feel like you're being turned into a human pincushion, starting at your feet and slowly making it's way up your body the process usually takes over an hour to finish. Yellow is like the calm before the storm, it fills you with a feeling of warmth like basking in the sun on a warm summer day. Yellow can last anywhere from a few minutes to a few days, it is also the last stage that I can heal."

That's why you asked Gojyo what color he was on." Hakkai said "You wanted to make sure you still had time to heal him."

"Yea, that's right. The final two stages are the worst. Orange boils the blood causing excruciating pain, and about ten seconds after you hit red your body bursts into flame, thus killing you."

"Well that sounds like an excruciating way to die so thanks a lot for healing me."

"You're welcome, though now there's a problem. They will attack you again even if I leave with Horyuu all because I came and saved you. Had I left you for dead they would have ignored your friends and continued going after me alone."

"Great so if one of us gets poisoned then we'll be screwed because we can't expect you to be able to run to our rescue at a moments notice." said Sanzo.

"I wouldn't come anyway. Next time I leave it'll be for good." Howaito sighed and leaned back in his chair. "There is something I can do though. I have the ability to create a sort of pill that will immunize you to the poison. The only problem is that I takes awhile for me to create it, but since we're currently heading in the same direction then I could travel with you till I get where I'm heading and hope that I've finished all the pills by then."

"Of course if you're going to travel with us then the chances that they will attack us will be certain." Hakkai said. "We're already being attacked constantly by demons so having to deal with both would be dangerous. It's a difficult choice, either way the risks are rather high."

"Well the choice is yours. Truthfully I don't really care, either way you'll die long before me. I've seen enough mortals die to know better than to get attached." Howaito stood up from the table. "I'm going to go look around town for awhile so why don't you take this time and decide weather you want me along or not."

After Howaito left the four silently sat thinking over their options.

"I think we should just take our chances on our own." Sanzo said. "As long as we're careful we'll only have to wait till they give up on us, and with Howaito on his own they'll probably give up fast."

"They'll probably attack first night we have to camp out." Gojyo said pushing his chair back.

"With the distances between here and the next town we may end up camping tonight." Hakkai said as he moved to sit on the bed. "Even if we don't camp out they'll probably still attack us under the cover of night. With Howaito with us we'll at least have the security of second healer for any close calls."

"I agree." Gojyo said as he sat next to Hakkai. "Besides if he really didn't care what happened to us then he wouldn't have made the suggestion. Probably wouldn't have even come back in the first place."

They all looked to Goku who was still shoveling down the last of the food. "I say let him come. Besides I don't want to risk dying from that poison."

"Fine then. Hakkai find Howaito and make sure we got plenty of supplies, we'll leave as soon as you get back." Sanzo said, opening up a newspaper and starting to read it.

TBC...

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Nanaka: Please Review and tell me what you think. Reviews make me happy and when I'm happy I write.

This chapter was a bit shorter than I would have liked but at the same time it covered a lot of ground.

Oh and the 11 plots turned into 13... I just about bashed my head in out of frustration... I'm sticking to my decided plot and I refuse to change no matter what plots I may think of next, though I almost switched to a plot that had a 'lets just go around killing people' feel to it.


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